How to Study for University Courses

Start at Least 2 Weeks Before Exams

As students prepare for university entrance exams in their late high school years, transitioning to university and leaving that study tempo behind brings relief. The worst aspect of this situation is underestimating university courses and getting complacent with the ease of having been accepted into university, leading to a lack of study. Students are often told the lie in high school that “you’ll relax once you get into university,” creating such a perception. In reality, university students need to study more and develop themselves thoroughly in their chosen fields. Generally, students realize this in their second year. They don't take their first-year courses seriously, and as a result, they have to retake many courses in their second year. This means taking on a heavier load in the second year, and this can continue in a cycle, potentially leading to extending their schooling.

Go From Easy to Difficult

Even if students don't open a book during normal times in university, very good exam results can be achieved with regular daily study for just 2 weeks before exams. The most important point here is to understand the lessons in class. Attending all classes and studying them a little is more effective than not attending classes much and trying to study from books or notes taken from peers as exams approach. To understand a course by studying for it without attending class will inevitably require more time than attending class and then studying. This is a waste of time in itself and will cause students to be rushed as exams approach. Therefore, by learning the lessons in class and then studying a bit, one can easily get good grades in those courses. The best method when studying for university courses is to start with the easy courses and move towards the difficult ones. Generally, there are about 10 courses per semester in universities. This number may vary. While it changes depending on the semester and year and is not definitive, at least 3 of these courses might be ones that can be passed very easily. Starting the study of these 10 courses with the 3 easy ones will not only give students morale at the beginning but also allow for faster progress. This is because students might completely give up studying when faced with difficult courses, and this could lead them to be prejudiced against those easier courses as well. Therefore, students should first start studying courses that they find easy and are interested in. Then, when studying difficult courses, if students cannot understand the topics, they should definitely study in a group with classmates. This study method will help in understanding even the most difficult topics of the most difficult courses. For this reason, a student should never hesitate to ask for help from others. If students do not like group work, they can try studying by getting a textbook for that course if their own notes are insufficient. If this does not work, the best method for individual study is to watch videos online. If it is a very common university major, there will certainly be videos about those topics online. This way, students who prefer to study individually will also understand those courses.